The Grudge
by Ruler of Fanfiction
Summary: The Black Beauty Sisters launch a suprise attack on Lucia's school. Heaven only knows what will happen. So far, Lucia and Kaito are now betrothed, and the wedding is only a few months away.
1. Chapter 1

(This is a one shot

(This is a one shot. I'm not planning on it, but I will continue if enough people ask me to.)

It was a day just like any other day in the lives of Lucia Nanami, Hanon Hoshou and Rina Toin. It was after two o'clock in the afternoon on a Thursday, so they were at school. They were in math class, to be precise. The teacher had just announced a pop quiz, and all the students were working busily.

Lucia tapped her pencil in frustration. She had memorized the formulas that were on this test only last night, but she could remember none of them. Leaning over toward her friends, Rina, she asked in a whisper, "Rina, what's the answer to this problem?"

"That's cheating, Lucia." Rina whispered back, not looking away from her own test paper. "I will not help you cheat on this test. If you're lucky, the teacher won't catch you talking."

In desperation, she turned to Hanon, but the Aquamarine Princess had even more blank problems than Lucia, and didn't look as is she would be much help. Lucia sighed and tried once more to focus on her test, but the harder she tried, the more blank her mind became. Just when she was about to admit defeat, a slight tremor shook the ground, son becoming stronger and more violent. The desks rattled and the test was forgotten as books and pencils fell to the floor.

"It's an earthquake!" One student yelled, and it only took that one word to send all the students into a frenzied panic. Some huddled in corners, but most tried to escape through the door and windows.

The tremors were getting louder, and as implausible at it seems, they sounded like they were getting nearer. Screams could be heard from the outside hallway, and cried of 'Monster!' were fearfully repeated. Just after the most violent tremor yet, a large part of the front wall collapsed, throwing dust and rubble over everything. In the short time it took for the dust to have cleared, the students and their teacher had gathered into a tight group in the center of the classroom. It was clear to see why everyone who had already seen the monster had been so terrified; a giant octopus filled the hole in the wall with its great bulk, four of its tentacles were free, knocking over desks and making a mess of the room, while its other four tentacles held unlucky prisoners. To the students, the prisoners were almost as fascinating as the monster itself. They were mermaids, their tails writhing and faces contorted with exertion and pain as they struggled to get free from their captor. Overseeing the destruction from the top of the octopus's head, were Mimi and Sheshe, the Black Beauty Sisters that first Gaito, and then Mikeru had employed. Now they were in business on their own, with a personal grudge against the Mermaid Princesses.

"Mermaid Princesses," Sheshe said, giving an ultimatum, "Our new minion has tracked your pearls to this location. The other princesses, as you can see, have already been captured without much struggle. We know how have hidden in the human world. I tell you now: Reveal yourselves, or your comrades will surely die!" She gave a signal, and the tentacles started to tighten around the captive mermaids, causing them to cry out in pain.

"You see, Mermaid Princesses, "Mimi said smugly, smiling evilly at the cringing group of frightened students, "The cries of your friends are a testimony of their slowly being squeezed to death. The tentacles will only get tighter, and their cries will only get louder."

"What do we do, Lucia?" Hanon whispered urgently.

"If we transform now, that the secret of our identity will be compromised." Rina whispered from Lucia's other side.

"It doesn't look like we have much choice." Lucia answered in resignation.

With many astonished gasps from those around them, they stepped out from the group of students and defiantly faced the Black Beauty Sisters. Sheshe and Mimi cackled in delight at the sight of their sought after prey revealing themselves like a mouse might to a snake.

"So these are your human forms?" Sheshe asked, "Not very pretty in my opinion. But what would you know about beauty? Right, Sister Mimi?"

"Right, Sister Sheshe." Mimi agreed, staring critically at the three girls standing in front of them.

"And now, my remaining enemies, we shall capture you as well." Sheshe gave another signal, and a tentacle shot with lightening speed toward Hanon, which she was barely able to dodge.

"Lucia, Hanon, Rina, be careful!" Noel managed to scream, struggling for breath from the tentacle wrapped around her waist.

"Shut up!" Mimi shouted, giving the out-spoken mermaid a clout on the head that left her stunned. The younger Black Beauty Sister was never one for not taking immediate action whenever a situation arose.

"We'll never forgive you for that!" Lucia cried, "Rina, Hanon, we've waited long enough. Let's finish this. The other two nodded and they transformed much to the shock of their fellow students.

"Hey, I know you; you're that singing group that shows up at the Pearl Piari sometimes!" A not very bright student exclaimed.

"Yes, we are, do you like our songs? It really takes no effort at all…"

"Geez, Lucia!" Hanon exclaimed, looking extremely annoyed. "This is not the time for that!"

"Everyone, please watch as we purify these two with our beautiful voices!" Rina, always the improviser, shouted.

With a now focused Lucia, the trio began their song. "Pitchi Pitchi Voice Live Start!" They shouted in unison.

_Nanairo no kaze ni fukarete tooi misaki wo mezashiteta _

_Yoake mae kikoeta MERODI _

_Sore wa totemo natsukashii uta _

_Higashi no sora e to habataku toritachi _

_Saa, takarajima ni nukeru chikamichi _

_Nanatsu no umi no rakuen _

_Arashi no yoru no ato ni wa _

_ai wo tsutaerutame inochi ga mata umareru _

_Nanatsu no kuni no MERODIA _

_Daremo ga itsuka wa koko wo _

_tabidatsu hi ga kitemo _

_Watashi wa wasurenai _

"Love Shower Pitch! Would you like an encore?"

"Drat you, Mermaid Princess!" Sheshe screamed before vanishing into thin air. Mimi said nothing; just shot them a hateful glare before vanishing like her sister. With a cry of anguish, the giant octopus also disappeared, releasing the Mermaid Princesses it had taken captive. Noel, Coco, Seira and Caren collapsed on the floor, too weak and short of breath to change into human forms.

"Are you all right?" Lucia asked, kneeling beside Coco, whose face had gone a pale white. The other three nearly dead mermaids looked little better, but it was most likely that they just needed to get some air.

"Lucia…" Hanon said slowly, "Turn around."

"I think we have a problem." Rina said, not sounding at all happy.

"What is it?" Lucia asked, turning to see what Hanon and Rina were staring at. What she saw gave her a sinking feeling. All of the students and their teacher were staring at them with wide eyes, incredulous looks on their faces. "Uh oh…"


	2. Chapter 2

(I don't normally write like this, but this is how I did it in the previous chapter, so I can't exactly change it now. The next chapter will have much more of the secondary mermaids. Sorry this one is so short.)

For a moment, the mermaids and the students just stared at one another, the only sound the labored breathing of those mermaids who had been captured. Then as if is on a silent signal, they surrounded the mermaids in a eager crowd, each one fighting to have a good view. The teacher stood like a mirror version of her students and made no move to control them.

"Is it true that you're mermaids like those women said?" One student asked. There really was no other explanation for why two women had tried to kill them and how they were able to transform, but for those who had not known about your secret identities before, it would have come as somewhat of a shock.

"And princesses?" A girl called from the back of the crowd.

"You…you might say that…" Lucia stammered, edging closer to the other mermaids for support. The crowd was pressing around them so that there looked to be no hope of escaping from it. Lucia racked her brains to try to figure a way out of this situation, but nothing presented itself.

"Why didn't you tell us before?" This was from Daichi, one of Kaito's friends. He, like most of the other boys, had an ongoing crush on Rina.

"I can't answer that question." Hanon quipped. She was beginning to panic. "And if you keep asking stupid questions, I'll fix it so you won't be able to."

"Easy, Hanon, easy…" Rina said quietly. "The last thing we need is for someone to get hurt." Turning to Lucia, she whispered, "We need to get out of here. Things are getting out of hand."

"I know!" Lucia sounded desperate. "But I just don't know how-" Lucia broke off as the door to the classroom slid open, revealing Kaito standing in the doorway. He saw the crowd but that only delayed him for a second before he began to push his way through the crowd to them.

"I heard the battle. Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." She leaned against him, his arms around her protectively. Unlike the other students, Kaito acted at ease around the mermaids who had transformed and those who hadn't had the strength to.

"Kaito, you knew about this?" A student asked incredulously from somewhere in the mass of overexcited people surrounding the mermaids.

"Yes, I did. And now, I'm afraid we must be going." Amidst many astonished and somewhat frightened cries of the humans, his forehead began to glow with the symbol of Panthelessan royalty. It created a blinding light so that those around them couldn't see an inch in front of their faces. "Lucia, run!" He shouted. Normally, this exertion of power would have made him black out, but he had become accustomed to his powers as a Prince of the Panthelessa.

Obeying his order, the three transformed mermaids each helped one of the previously imprisoned mermaids from the room. Maybe it was because she was smaller than the rest, but Seira had recovered enough to make her way without help. Once they were through the door, they changed into human forms, not caring who saw them. After all, the world had already discovered that they were mermaids, so what was there left to lose? With Kaito following behind, they hurried to the Pearl Piari, where they quickly told Nikora. Hippo and Taki what had happened.

"You did what?!" The penguin was dangerously close to hyperventilating. He paced back and forth, relating all the things that were sure to happen to them now. "This is bad, this is very bad. Reporters, experimental testing- the circus!" Hippo had an unhealthy fear of the circus because he was a talking penguin, and most circus owners would die to have such a thing in their show.

Nikora sank onto the couch, sadness and resignation written on her face. "It's over. After all this time, it's finally happened. We might have to go back to the sea."

"It's not a question. It's a fact." Taki moved into view, her features stern. "We have no choice but to go back. Now that they know who and what we are, there will be no safety for us here."

"I agree." Nikora said. "There are no other options. Kaito, you had better come with us. From what you say, you identity is not a secret any longer as well."

Kaito nodded in agreement. "I'll just go back and collect some of my things. I won't need most of them outside of the human world, but there are some things I would like to take."

"Be back before nightfall." Taki instructed. "We leave tonight."

Throughout the day, they focused on packing and arrangements for their trip. Since Lucia's kingdom was closest, that is where they would go first. Once, Nikora had opened the door in answer to the bell and there had been at least ten different reporters out there, all clamoring for 'only a few words about the mermaids.' Horrified, Nikora had shut the door in their faces and went about her tasks with a renewed vigor. "It's a good thing we're leaving tonight." She muttered to herself.


	3. Chapter 3

This is a one shot

(This may seem a little rushed, and I'm sorry about that, but I didn't want to put the ending of this chapter in the beginning of the next one.)

Kaito returned well before nightfall. All he had with him were the clothes on his back and a small waterproof bag filled with such items as photo albums, a framed portrait of him and his adoptive parents, the letter that his 'Aunt' had delivered to him from his adoptive parents, telling him of how he came to be their son; that sort of thing.

The others had equally small bundles. What was necessary to live in the human world was of no consequence in the world under the sea, so they spent the rest of the afternoon hauling boxes and bags up to the attic and putting dust covers over the furniture. It was all a charade though, for they all knew that they would not be coming back.

"Here's the last box, Kaito!" Lucia called up the attic stairs. They had been packing ever since it had been decided that they must return to the sea, and it was finally almost finished. Lucia took a long glance around her. This had been her home for the past year and a half, and she felt sorry to leave it.

Kaito came downstairs, a little out of breath from hauling so many questions. Lucia really should have been helping him, but she took so long to pack that Kaito had been forced by impatience into doing it himself. 'Are you sure this is it?" He asked. "No more boxes?"

"I'm positive." Lucia smiled at him reassuringly. The thought of Kaito coming with them made leaving the human world a lot less disheartening that would otherwise normally be. Always helpful, she checked with the others to see if there was anything else to be done before they left that night. When she walked past Hanon's room, she saw an all too familiar sight. The Aquamarine Princess was standing in front of her window, staring out at the scenery, although there was nothing to see but what had always been there. Much like Lucia had done so many times before when she was worried about a situation with Kaito.

"Thinking about Nagisa?" Lucia ventured.

"Yes." Hanon said quietly and a little sadly. "After all the times I snubbed him, he still kept trying. And look at me now; I'm his girlfriend. We…never said that we loved each other, it was more of an accepted fact. A fact left for the future to confirm. But now-"Her voice broke and she let out a half strangled sob, "We're going back, probably permanently. Lucia, I'll never get the chance to- to tell him that I love him." She covered her face with her hands and sobbed with the tears of one who is parted from the truest love that they have ever known.

Lucia imagined that Rina must be feeling the same way about leaving Masahiro, but she stayed with Hanon until her sobs quieted and she composed herself enough to speak again.

"You're the lucky one, Lucia." Hanon muttered a trifle bitterly. "Kaito is coming with us. _You _won't be parted from the one you love."

Yes, she was lucky. Lucia reflected as she descended the stairs to the first floor of the seaside hotel. When they had first met, Kaito had seemed like a jerk and a womanizer to Lucia. Then as she had gotten to know him, she had recognized that he was the boy she had saved those seven years ago. It had been quite a bit harder to get Kaito to realize Lucia's identity as the mermaid who had saved him, but after almost a year and much grief and confusion on both sides, he had figured it out. Now the two were an official couple, and it was his heritage as a Prince of the Panthelessa that enabled him to be on this trip back to the seas. Back to the kingdoms where she and the other princesses ruled and resided, and where no humans would be able to bother them.

Downstairs, Coco, Noel, Rina, Caren and Seira were sitting on the floor, a Parcheesi board set up in front of them. All the packing was complete, but they had kept the game out for just such an occasion as this. Since the game was already in progress, Lucia only sat back and watched. Apparently, Seira and Noel were tied for the lead, with the other three not far behind.

'No fair!" Coco cried out as Caren made a move that knocked her further back in the standings. "You should be going for them, not me. I'm already losing, remember/"

All's fair in love and war." Caren quoted, but from what that quote is from I do not remember. Her eyes were bright with even this small victory. "I intend to win, and I will crush you all if that means I achieve my goal!"

"You take this game way too seriously," Rina said, looking a little uneasy at Caren's heated words.

"I agree." Noel told her sister. "It's just a game. There isn't a prize for winning."

"Oh, yes there is." Caren contradicted smugly. "The knowledge that I will have defeated you all is prize enough."

The group lapsed into an awkward silence as the game continued, Caren gloating over every small victory she made. Seira was in a middle of a comeback when the game was interrupted; the players looked up to find Taki standing in the room.

"It is time." The old woman announced. "Do not bother to put that away, it is of no importance." A person of few words, she left the room, expecting the mermaids to follow her.

They followed Taki as she led them through the back door of the hotel and down to the beach, where Kaito, Nikora and Hanon were already waiting with the things they would be taking with them from the human world. The place would normally be crawling with reporters, but since it was the dead of might, none were around.

Silently, they entered the water and quickly began to swim, Hippo leading the way. Kaito hung back a bit. Out of them all, leaving the human world would be hardest for him, he having been raised there for most of his life. He had no family that was left alive, but there were two people that came from the same race that he did. They had taken care of him when he had lost his memory, even without the knowledge that he was a Prince of the Panthelessa, and therefore their ruler. It would be cruel if he just left without bidding them farewell.

"Nikora! Wait a moment!" He called out, swimming up beside her. Nikora slowed down to match his pace and they conversed, he quickly explained the situation and what he wished to do. She nodded her head in assent, but gave him some instructions.

"Take Lucia with you, she will lead the way back to our kingdom once you are finished with your farewells. If anyone else wishes to go with the two of you, they are welcome to do so, but do not take too long. The longer we wait around here means more chances for reporters or some other humans could spot us."

"All right, I'll remember that.' Kaito agreed. He then notified Lucia of the change in plans. Naturally, all of the other princesses wanted to come as well, they having become good friends with Rihito and little Mikaru in the months since Mikeru had been defeated. Splitting up with Taki, Nikora and Hippo, they began to swim toward the house where two of the last remaining members of the Panthelessa were residing.

"So you're leaving then?" Rihito asked bluntly from his seat on the couch. He had been a bit surprised when Kaito and the seven Mermaid Princesses in human form showed up in the middle of the night, but they had explained to him what was happening and he had come up with what he saw as the only solution to the problem.

"Yes, we are." Lucia confirmed. She was saddened by this latest farewell that they would have to make.

"We wanted to say goodbye before we traveled to Lucia's kingdom." Kaito said, "I don't think we'll be coming back."

"I see." Rihito said, moving to hold the very tired Mikaru in his lap. The toddler had been allowed to be up for this special occasion, and the time of night and loss of her normal sleep pattern was getting to her.

"You…you can come visit us sometime." Coco spoke hopefully, not taking into consideration that Rihito was only half Panthelessa. The other half was human, and as we all very well know, humans cannot survive long underwater. Coco was fonder of the dark haired conductor than she let on, and she latched onto to any hope that might let them see each other again.

"Even if I had a choice to come with you, I couldn't." Rihito explained, "Mikaru deserves a life like the one she had. …No, not like the one she had, but a life here, where she can enjoy all the amenities that being a successful orchestra conductor has to offer her."

"We understand." Noel said gently, "You want to make up for what Mikaru had to go through before."

Rihito and Mikaru's father had been tricked into letting his daughter's body become a sort of host for an ancient being known as Mikeru. This ancient being had tried to take control of both the kingdoms under the sea and the world above it. Being the host of this being caused Mikaru to be rather sickly, and prone to dangerous fainting spells. The Mermaid Princesses, along with Kaito, Rihito and of course Aqua Regina, defeated Mikeru, but Mikaru lost her life in the process. She was given a second chance at life by Aqua Regina, who returned to an infant form, free from all traces of Mikeru's DNA.

They continued to talk for about an hour more, and then they decided that they could wait no longer, and that it was time to return to their journey. They bid a fond farewell to Rihito and Mikaru and quickly headed down to the beach, where they dove effortlessly under the waves.


	4. Chapter 4

(I'm really getting tired of writing like this, but since I started the story this way, I guess I have no choice. Oh, and KaitoandLuchia4ever95? In reply to your review, since I have updated the story since the first chapter, that doesn't make it a one shot anymore and I will keep updating until I have finished this story.)

They swam for what seemed to be time out of mind. Kaito lagged somewhat behind the others, who after all, were mermaids, so they slowed their pace. Even at a slower pace, it was still long before dawn when they at last caught sight of Lucia's palace. Domed and turreted, the palace glowed with a faint pink color amidst the blackness of the ocean around them.

She could not guess how the others felt, but to Lucia, the palace brought back memories of playing in large rooms with vaulted ceilings as a young girl, and then as she grew a little older, studying under the tutelage of two of her guardians, Nikora and Hippo.

Of course, during that time, Lucia did not have any idea that she was the princess of an entire kingdom. Namely the North Pacific kingdom ruled over by the Pink Pearl Princess.

Taki, the kingdom's resident wise woman, had foreseen trouble and great hardship during Lucia's reign as the next holder of the Pink Pearl, so they had hidden her true origins from her until they had come up on land to retrieve the pearl that she had so foolishly given to Kaito many years before. She had had to come to the surface world to retrieve it, and had become embroiled in the fierce battle between the once ruling clan of the Panthelessa and the mermaids.

But, Lucia thought happily, all that had turned out for the best. She had recovered her pearl, completed her mission with the six other Mermaid Princesses, and now Kaito was traveling with them to remain under the seas for what was likely to be the rest of their lives, unless something happened to prove otherwise. There was still the matter of the Black Beauty sisters and their direct attack on the mermaids in the human world to discuss, but Lucia refused to let the thought of those two annoying women ruin her mood.

With a sudden eagerness to reach the kingdom that was her home, she darted ahead, soon reaching the palace grounds. The word about their arrival must have spread quickly, for decorations had been hastily put up on and around the buildings, and a great crowd, similar and yet so unlike the mob that had surrounded them in the human world, had gathered together in the streets. A loud cheer erupted as Princess Lucia swam into view, the rest of the group of travelers not far behind her.

"Princess Lucia," An older mermaid with dark pink hair arranged in a bun at the back of her head bowed deeply, "Welcome back. I speak for myself and for us all when I say that we are honored by your return and that we have all worked our hardest to restore our illustrious kingdom to its former glory."

"Thank you, Marella." Lucia gazed around at all her loyal subjects with shining eyes. After all this time, she was content just to be among them, to let their undying love and loyalty wash over her like a protecting wave. "I'm sure you know why we have come. Circumstances have decreed that we can no longer live in the human world. Along with the other Mermaid Princess and Kaito, the last Prince of the Panthelessa, we have traveled under the seas to stay. Permanently, it looks like."

"Very good, Princess," Marella bowed once more for formality and then motioned for them to follow after her. "The maids will show the guests to their rooms; but the three who have come before you made it clear that once you had arrived here, you were to be taken directly to where they are now waiting." She explained as she swam into the palace and through some of its many corridors. If Marella had any misgivings about housing a Prince of the Panthelessa in the palace, she did not voice them or let them show in her face. They soon came to a central room, where Nikora, Taki and Hippo had already seated themselves around a large table. Lucia and the others took their seats at the nearest empty chairs.

At a signal from Nikora, Marella bowed once more and left the room, her task complete.

"Mermaid Princesses, Kaito," Taki began soberly. "The time has now come to discuss the reason behind why we have been forced to return to our homes under the sea. True, it was not safe for us to begin with above the surface, but it was made even more perilous by our enemies attacking us in broad daylight, as it were."

Hippo continued the conversation. "The Black Beauty Sisters were able to deduce where we were hiding in the human world, and managed to take prisoner four of the seven Mermaid Princess. Such a thing does not happen on its own! How were they able to find out such vital information? Obviously, they must have had had some inside source, a source that we know nothing about."

"I don't see how that could be possible." Caren said, "Unless they've infiltrated our inner circle in some way and managed to get information out of one of our allies." She looked sideways at Kaito. Caren trusted the young sea prince the least out of all of them. Mostly because of what his family had tried to do, and how far they had managed to make their plan succeed in capturing Coco and Noel, who was Caren's twin sister.

Lucia caught Caren's glance and discerned what it meant. "That's not fair, Caren!" She exclaimed hotly in Kaito's defense. "Kaito is just as loyal as any of us!"

Caren looked indifferent. "If you say so, Lucia, then I'm inclined to believe you. I just want to be sure that we're not harboring a traitor here in the palace."

"Would the both of you please stop arguing?" Noel pleaded before anyone could resent Caren's last statement. Turning her gaze toward the three senior members of this little discussion group, she projected her own theory. "Is…is it possible that we might have told the Black Beauty Sisters ourselves, without meaning to? They might have other identities as well, and due to their villainous nature they would be excellent at eavesdropping and sneaking around to gather information."

"Hmmm…That suggestion had not occurred to me." Hippo said thoughtfully, rubbing his beak as if it would help him think faster. "But it has merit. At any given time, we might have given ourselves away unintentionally. Kaito, consider yourself cleared from all suspicion."

"Thank you." Kaito said, "But my being cleared of suspicion does not solve the current problem. Having served under my brother, the Black Beauty Sisters know where each of the seven kingdoms is located. It is highly probable that they will strike again, and when we least expect it."

"We have already considered that." Nikora spoke for the first time. "And we have given sent messages to every kingdom, warning them of a possible attack."

"If you please, I wish to remain here only a short time before returning to my kingdom. If there is a chance of danger to my home, it is my place to be there with my people" Coco requested with her usual politeness. It was only partly because of what she had already specified that she wished to go back to her own kingdom. In actuality, she had not forgotten about Rihito, and the feelings from parting from him still stung her heart. She wanted to mourn her loss in peace, away from where others might see her and inquire into the nature of her depression.

"You may return as soon as soon as you would like, Coco-san." Hippo assured her. "But I would advise remaining here for at least a fortnight, in case the Black Beauty Sisters waste no time in attacking us again. If that happens, then I want all of the Mermaid Princesses here. That way, we have a better chance of defeating them than if we were scattered across the seas."

Coco bent her head in agreement and was silent.

"There is nothing more we can do to prevent an attack besides patrolling the seas ourselves. And that could very well be disastrous if our enemies manage to find one of us alone and attack before the others have time to reach them." Rina surmised, adding her wisdom to that of those who had already spoken.

"If there is any patrolling to be done, it will have to be in groups of three or more, and every precaution will be taken." Taki said authoritatively. "If no one else has anything else to say, I hereby conclude this meeting."

No one did have anything to say, so the group parted and went on to do whatever tasks they had to complete before the day was through. Kaito, Lucia and the other princesses were soon taken to their rooms by the palace maids. Lucia did not need a maid to show her the way, she having lived in the palace for most of her life.

Her room was just as she had left it. It was cleaner perhaps, but otherwise just as she had left it before her escape to the surface world almost two years before. As was expected, pink was the dominant color in the room. The walls, bed coverings, the floor, and basically everything else in the room were a shade of pink. Lucia swam around, picking up this and that and reminiscing about her childhood when there came a knock at the door.

Dropping what she was doing, she answered the door to find Kaito standing in the doorway, Noel and Rina just behind him. Greeting them, she opened the door wider so that they could come inside.

"It took me a long time to find your room." Kaito said, entering the room and gazing around it with the interest any boyfriend would have about what his girlfriend's room looked like. Especially if said girlfriend was the princess of her own kingdom. "Mine is almost on the other side of the place. I don't think the palace staff likes me very well."

"That's not true, Kaito." Lucia tried to smooth things over. "It's just…well…"

"What she's trying to say is that after what your brother almost accomplished, it is only natural that the people here would have some doubts about any member of the Panthelessa being here." Noel calmly explained. As always, she too it upon herself to try and remedy any situation that went wrong.

"Don't worry, Kaito." Rina said lightly, smiling at her own joke, "In a year or more, they'll forget all about your heritage and treat you like any other resident of the kingdom."

"Oh, surely it won't take that long!" Lucia exclaimed in defense of this slight of her subject's willingness to accept someone different from themselves.

"Who knows? It might take even longer." Rina was smiling broadly now, enjoying watching Lucia react to her words. This wasn't normal behavior for her, but having to leave the human world with its plasma screen televisions and most importantly her boyfriend Masahiro, had taken its toll on her emotions. Give her a day to vent her feelings in her own way and she'd be fine by the next morning.

"I doubt that it will take quite that long." Noel once again felt called upon to do what she felt was her duty. There was that, and the fact that she just hated conflicts between her friends.

"Have you seen the rest of the palace?" Lucia asked Kaito, ignoring Rina's remark. When the Green Pearl Princess was in this mood, it was wiser to say nothing than risk the lash of her sharp tongue ad barbed insults. As it was, Lucia couldn't wait for this day to be over.

Kaito shook his head to indicate that he had not, so along with Rina and Noel, Lucia started a grand tour of the palace that she had grown up in. In the middle of the tour, they met up with the other four Mermaid Princesses and continued the tour with them in tow. Seira and Kaito seemed the mot amazed and inquisitive than the others were.

It was only to be expected. Seira's kingdom had been destroyed by the wrath of the previous Orange Pearl Princess before her, and it was a hard enough job finding the mermaids of her kingdom who had survived the destruction of the kingdom without rebuilding her palace into the bargain.

As for Kaito, well, he had been raised believing that he was a normal human, and as a human, you don't see many things such as an underwater palace in everyday life. He had been to the North Pacific kingdom before however. On the day of Lucia's coming of age ceremony, he had been taken there by Momo, the pink dolphin. Unfortunately, Gaito, his own twin brother, had chosen that day to attack the palace. Gaito was defeated, and it was only afterwards that it was discovered that Lucia's ceremony had taken place privately at some point during the battle. Without any time to really look around the palace, Kaito had been returned to the surface, no wiser than he had been about Lucia's alternate identity. Thankfully for us all, Kaito eventually figured it out.

So now he paid close attention to what Lucia was saying as she described what different rooms were used for and what certain furnishings represented. Once, he caught a small cluster of maids looking at him with anxiousness and curiosity reflected in their faces. He quickly turned away and ignored them.


	5. Chapter 5

(I got bored, so this isn't my best chapter.)

The fortnight sped by, and it seemed in all respects that Noel was right. With sufficient time to adjust, the mermaids of Lucia's kingdom had begun to treat Kaito as less of a possible threat, and more like a regular subject of the kingdom, with due respect of his status as a prince, of course. Some accepted him readily, others still had some suspicions about the wisdom of letting a member of the clan that had tried to destroy them roam freely about the palace and the rest of the kingdom.

There was no attack from the Black Beauty Sisters, nor were there any rumors of their whereabouts or of what they were doing. Hippo feared a surprise attack, but since none had come, he could hardly complain.

The time had come for the Mermaid Princesses who were not native to the North Pacific kingdom to depart for their own domains. In a final moment together before departure, the seven princesses and Kaito were gathered in one of the more private rooms of the palace, bidding each other a fond farewell.

"Goodbye, Seira "Lucia said, putting her arms around the younger mermaid. When she pulled away from the hug, she exclaimed softly "Why, Seira, you're crying!"

The young Orange Pearl Princess did not reply, only returned Lucia's hug with a fierce one of her own. Seira would deny it to anyone who mentioned it, but she still had a great deal of the childlike emotions that come with innocence. Mikeru had opened her eyes to a world of pain and suffering, but at heart she was still an eleven year old girl. Releasing Lucia, she then went and said her goodbyes to everyone else that she had become so fond of over the short time that she had been a Mermaid Princess.

Lucia looked around at all the friends that she had made and a pang of sadness pierced her heart. How could they, who had been through so much, part ways now? Oh, she knew it was inevitable and would happen whether she wanted it to or not, but that didn't make it any less hard to say goodbye to those whom she loved.

"Well, I'm off!" Caren called jovially, swimming toward the door. She had said her goodbyes earlier, and she wasn't one for dragging anything out longer than she thought it needed to be. A chorus of farewells followed her as she swam through the door and out to the ocean beyond.

"That was…abrupt." Rina muttered to herself. Even after all these months, she still did not fully understand the Purple Pearl Princess. Rina's previous bad mood had completely worn off, and to the relief of all she was her normal, polite, blunt self again.

After saying farewell to everyone personally, Noel also left. Unlike some of the others, Noel didn't have any connection to the human world save that it was a place to hide in times of trouble, but she had never forged a relationship that might have been potentially painful to leave. Her only friends were those who were of the sea, and because of that she had no regrets about returning to her ancestral home.

Now it was Coco's turn to bid her fellow princesses goodbye until the next festival brought them together. She gazed fondly at each of her remaining friends in turn, tears in her eyes. The tears were not just grief about losing her friends, but for parting from Rihito as well. The others knew this, for Coco had not been quite as successful in hiding her feelings as she would have liked to be. They made no comment, only enveloped her in a group hug and then she went on her way.

Seira would go with Coco part of the way, as their kingdoms were on the same side of the world. To her great disappointment, the young princesses would find Coco to be quite a silent traveling companion.

Rina was the next to leave. Though Lucia and Hanon were her best friends, she wasn't comfortable with more than a short embrace before swimming off to the North Atlantic kingdom where she belonged.

With Rina gone, Hanon was the only Mermaid Princess who had not yet said her farewells. Unlike Caren and Rina, she pulled Lucia into a giant bear hug before letting go. She and Lucia had been the first Mermaid Princesses to gather together to fight the forces of evil under the seas, and they had developed a deep friendship over the past year and a half that they spent together.

"Well, goodbye Lucia." Hanon said finally, letting thoughts of the future distract her from what she was currently experiencing. "I'll see you at the next festival." With her own sudden surge of homesickness for her home, Hanon too set of for her kingdom and the faithful subjects who were waiting patiently for her return.

Lucia waved and watched her friends depart for as long as they were in sight. When the last of them had passed farther than she could follow with her vision, she turned away with a sigh from the window where she had stationed herself. Now there was only Kaito left to keep her company. Well, the only person left in the palace that was her age, to be precise. Sure, Hippo might look young, but he seemed to have all the fun sucked right out of him because he was a servant, and also because he was responsible for her welfare.

Swimming around in search of him, she finally found her beloved boyfriend just outside the palace, staring up at the sky, distorted as it was by the ocean he was staring through. She called his name and he tore his attention regretfully from the sky and smiled at her in a greeting of his own.

"Oh, Kaito, I'm so glad I found I found you!" Lucia surprised her boyfriend by almost knocking him over with a fierce hug, letting the tears that she had been struggling to hold in fall freely.

"Lucia…What's wrong?" Kaito asked in concern. He was especially anxious about the tears. Whenever Lucia was crying, that meant that she had been under great emotional strain, that something had hurt or touched her deeply, or that something terrible thing had happened.

"It's just that Rina, Hanon and the others just left, and I'm feeling very lonely…" She gazed up at him, fixing her eyes, adoring though still brimming over with tears, onto his face.

Kaito sighed with relief. So it was only loneliness that made her cry this way, and not a cataclysmic event. "You have me, don't you?" He asked, keeping his arms still wrapped around her in a protective embrace.

"Yes, that's true." Lucia said, brightening a little. "But I still wish they hadn't had to leave." Suddenly, she remembered what Kaito had been doing when doing when she had come out here and it struck her as rather an odd thing to do. "Kaito, why were you staring up at the sky? Do…do you miss the human world very much?"

"Do I miss the human world? Well, of course I do. I was raised there for most of my life and it's only natural to miss what is familiar to you. But I don't miss it enough to want to leave you, if that's what you're thinking."

"Kaito…" Lucia reached up and placed her lips against his in a gentle kiss. The maids saw it and were worried. Nikora saw it and was filled with mixed emotions, being, after all, female. Taki saw it and sighed for her lost youth and the lover that she had once hoped to spend her life with. Hippo saw it and was at once both concerned about how serious the relationship between Lucia and Kaito really was, and heartbreak over his own lost love, Yuuri.

Soon enough, they pulled apart and ended the kiss, but they still kept their arms around each other. Each found comfort in the other's presence.

Two days later, Kaito and Lucia revisited points of interest from their tour of the palace. One such place was the Room of Records, more commonly known as the library. Kaito looked through many books, mostly on history and ancient legends. He never seemed to find what he was looking for, but kept rifling through one book after another.

Lucia was thoroughly confused. In all the almost two years that she had known him; Kaito had never been this interested in history. "Kaito," She began helpfully, a puzzled frown on her pretty face. "Are you searching for anything in particular? If you are, then there's a good chance that I can help you find it. After all, I am the princess of this kingdom."

Kaito stopped in the middle of flipping through a massive book of history and answered a little sheepishly. "Well, yes, there is something I want to know. Perhaps you can tell me the information I'm looking for." He took a deep breath before beginning. "Why are there no mermen here? As far as I know, the only males here are Hippo and myself, and neither of us are mermen. I just don't understand how you can have an entire civilization comprised entirely of—Lucia? What's wrong now?" He broke off his inquiry when he saw that Lucia had partly turned away, her face was hidden from his view.

Lucia bent her head, her beautiful long, blonde hair falling forward, hiding her face even further. "It was the war." She finally managed to force out. Her voice shook, which was clear evidence of oncoming tears. "It was that devastating war between the Mermaid race…and the Panthelessa."

Kaito stiffened, suddenly uneasy of what she was about to tell him. "Surely you can't mean that my people…" His voice trailed off into a helpless groan as the fullness of what his race, his own _family_, had done. He thought he now knew why the maids and other palace staff were so apprehensive of him.

"Yes!" Lucia cried fiercely, whirling around to face Kaito. "When the war started, all the mermen went off to fight. The war lasted so long, and the troops of the Panthelessa seemed to have no end. At the end of the fighting, none of the mermen were left alive. I was engaged to one once." Lucia laughed bitterly. "He was a fine boy, I'm told. I was only an infant at the tie that we were betrothed. The Panthelessa…they even killed the youngest, the most inexperienced ones, those who were too young to fight. Not even Aqua Regina could save them."

Kaito did not know what to do. On the one hand, he loved Lucia and wanted to comfort her but on the other hand, he did not know how she would accept any overtures from him, since he was of Panthelessan descent. He chose the safest route, although if she answered positively to this, then it would break his heart. "Lucia, even if my people had not killed all the mermen, and your prince survived, would you have married him after meeting me beforehand?" Sure, it sounded insensitive, but it was what he most wanted to know at that moment.

Lucia looked at him in surprise. This was not the sort of question she had expected. Even from Kaito. "I…I don't know. If Takeshi had survived, then things might have been different. I would have been torn between the both of you. I don't think I could have borne that. To have the both of you vying for my love and attention, one of you would have eventually gotten hurt, however much I tried to prevent it."

"I guess that's the answer, then." Kaito turned away abruptly and started to walk out of the room.

Lucia watched him go, horrified. _What have I done?_ She berated herself mentally, _Because of something that happened in the past, Kaito is leaving me. _"Kaito, wait!" She called out, swimming to his side with powerful strokes of her mermaid tail. "Kaito, you know that my heart will always belong to you. I don't care who your family was, it makes no difference to me. Well, actually it does make a difference, because if you weren't Panthelessan, you wouldn't be able to survive down here. But you have to know that if it had come down to a decision between you and Takeshi, I would've picked you in an instant. I love you, Kaito."

Now it was Kaito's turn to be choked up. Here beside him was the fulfillment of all that he had ever wanted. Someone to love him unconditionally and who would not sneer at his heritage. Of course, there had been no sneering in human world, as they did not know who e really was, but that was beside the point. Taking Lucia in his arms, he gazed lovingly into her adoring eyes. That gaze told them everything each of them needed to know. "I love you, Lucia," Kaito whispered before kissing her fervently.

Just like before, the maids reported all that had taken place between Lucia and Kaito. They weren't trying to spy or be tattletales, but they just did what they thought was right. When Hippo heard what had happened, he, Taki and Nikora began a discussion whose outcome was as yet unclear.


	6. Chapter 6

"Well, Hippo, what have you called us here for?" Nikora questioned, looking expectantly at the little blue penguin sitting at a round table that looked built for holding conferences. Taki, the kingdom's wise woman, was seated next to Hippo, having already received his summons.

"Ah, Nikora, you're here. We've been expecting you. But the situation can be explained by example much better than I could ever explain it." Hippo said. Without wasting any time, he gestured toward the big window that gave a view of the castle gardens. "Take a look out there and tell me what you see."

Puzzled, Nikora went to the window and followed instructions. What she saw made Hippo's vague comments suddenly seem much clearer: Princess Lucia and Kaito were employed in a childish game of chasing each other around the garden's many beds of coral and sea fauna. Whenever Kaito caught up with Lucia, he would take her in his arms and swing her around in a circle, occasionally finishing with a kiss.

"They certainly seem friendly enough." She said dryly, a hint of concerned sarcasm showing in her voice.

"That is exactly my point." Hippo affirmed, "In fact, I have observed them become altogether too friendly. What will happen if this is allowed to go on, and things take a more serious turn? Taki-san, what do you think?"

The seemingly middle-aged woman paused to gather her thoughts before replying to Hippo's inquiry. "There are two choices. The first: keep them from seeing each other, which is hardly practical as the princess outranks us all and the maids will do anything she asks. The second is perhaps the most obvious, but will take the most work and thought: They must be betrothed and married before unwanted events take place before hand."

"But Lucia and Kaito are so young." Nikora protested. "Surely they are too young to be married!"

"In that you are wrong." Taki spoke again. "Weren't you younger than she was when you were betrothed and wed to your late husband?"

Nikora bowed her head in sorrow at the mention of her dead husband. They had been so much in love, and he had promised to come back from the wars a celebrated hero. But alas, he was killed in an ambush, and so she who had so recently become a bride, was left as a young widow. "Yes." She murmured, giving her assent to the plan, whatever they decided to do.

Uncomfortable seeing Nikora made uncomfortable, Hippo took charge of the conversation once more. Authority among the group shifted very easily, and although Hippo was supposed to be in charge, he sometimes got the feeling that, after the princess, Taki was the real authority, she just liked to let him feel that he was running things. "I would hate to see Lucia unhappy. The first plan would undoubtedly make her so, and that only leaves the betrothal."

"Very well, then. We shall start preparations immediately." Taki rang for a maid and instructed her to tell the two teenagers who were frolicking in the gardens to come to them at once.

The three senior members of the board (If you are confused, that's Nikora, Taki and Hippo) remained in an expectant sort of silence before the door opened and Lucia and Kaito were ushered in.

"Hippo, what's this about?" Lucia queried, much like Nikora had a short time ago.

"Are we in trouble, sir?" Kaito asked pensively. Try as he might, he never could get used to calling Hippo by his first name. He didn't know the reason for that, but since it didn't bother Hippo, he figured it shouldn't bother him, either.

Hippo wasn't fazed by either the questions or the honorific. "No…no, you're not in trouble. Please, sit down."

They did and soon everyone was looking at Hippo, patiently waiting for him to tell them the reason that they had all been told to gather in this room. Naturally, all this attention fixated on him made Hippo feel a little nervous.

"Well, you see," Hippo began, gulping to clear the lump that had unexplainably formed in his throat, "The three of us have noticed that you, Princess, and Prince Kaito have become very close over the time that we have been here since returning to the seas."

"Is that a problem?" Lucia asked, flashing Hippo her brightest, most innocent and endearing smile.

"No…I mean yes! I…" Hippo was lost for words. He mentally berated himself. Why had he so suddenly lost the ability to speak? This had never happened to him before. Maybe it was telling Lucia that she going to be betrothed. It wasn't that he had any feelings for the girl himself, but he did share some of Nikora's doubts that the two teenagers were perhaps too young to be joined in wedded bliss. He consoled himself by remembering that, in her own right, Lucia was an adult mermaid.

"What Hippo is trying to say is that to prevent anything that shouldn't happen before two are joined by matrimony, you two will be betrothed and married before the year is out." Nikora explained. They actually hadn't discussed the date of the wedding yet, but in her experience, if two people were going to be married, sooner was always better.

"We are to be betrothed? Why, that's wonderful news!" Lucia exclaimed. "Isn't it wonderful, Kaito? …Kaito?"

Her soon to be fiancé was sitting as if frozen in his chair. But while his body was numb, his mind was whirling. This was too much too soon for the young sea prince to handle. Only a little less than a month ago, he had been living a normal life up on land. Now, he had relocated to the depths of the ocean, and now was being told that by the end of the year, he must be married to the girl he loved. And all this before his sixteenth birthday! "Thank…you…" He managed to say, still somewhat in shock by the urgency of this whole affair.

"How soon will the wedding be, Taki?" Lucia asked. Like Hippo, Lucia recognized the shifting of authority from the small blue penguin to the wise woman. However, she didn't other her pretty little head with unimportant power struggles. She had a wedding to plan.

"The actual date has not been decided yet, but I would estimate sometime in the next two months. We are nearing the end of October, after all. But first, the two of you must be officially betrothed. That can take place almost immediately."

Lucia's blue eyes shone with happiness. "You've made me so happy. And I daresay I speak for both myself and my fiancé when I say that we are both looking forward to the ceremonies."

Kaito didn't say anything. He was still in shock.

"We must send out invitations to the other kingdoms as soon as possible if they are to arrive before the betrothal ceremony is to take place." Nikora commented, now becoming interested in getting her princess married off.

"I'll have the maids see to it at once." Hippo said confidently. He felt that, for the moment, the authority was his again. "You and Prince Kaito may leave now if you wish, Princess." Since this was a formal occasion, Hippo used only the most formal terms to address the young royals.

Feeling that it might be in their best interests to leave, as the wedding plans were being discussed with more and more fervor, Lucia and Kaito took their leave. Soon they were back in the palace gardens, exactly where they had been before they were told the astonishing news.

"Can you believe it, Kaito?" Lucia asked happily as she swam along at Kaito's side. "We're going to be married in December!"

"Yes, it's wonderful, but-"

"But what? Is anything wrong?" Lucia moved in front of Kaito and stared up at him with eyes threatening to show deep hurt and to cry buckets of tears if the right stimulation was provided. "Is it that…you don't want to marry me?"

"No, no! I want to marry you, my love, believe me, I do."

"Then what is the matter?"

The young Panthelessan Prince sat down on a wall that bordered a bed of sea kelp. "It's just that I never expected to be married…quite this soon. I'm hardly what you'd consider of marriageable age. What if we get married, and then find that we've made a terrible mistake?"

"That won't happen." His fiancé assured him. "Yes, we are young by human standards, but here you and I are considered adults in every sense of the word. Most girls my age would have been married already. That is, if the mermen were still alive." Not wanting to stay on that painful subject very long, she continued, "Besides, it will be a learning experience for the both of us. We already love each other. What could go wrong?"

Strangely comforted by this logic, Kaito relaxed and the two of them wandered the gardens until the presence of one or both of them was needed elsewhere in the palace.


	7. Chapter 7

(I'm still bored…And tired…I know the betrothal is a little routine and haphazardly put together, but I couldn't really think of anything else that wouldn't be over elaborate.)

It had been almost two weeks since Hippo had called Princess Lucia and Prince Kaito into the conference that had announced their betrothal. During that time, the entire kingdom was in a flurry of motion; setting up decorations, all in at least one shade of pink, and preparing the food and refreshments for the congratulatory celebration after the ceremonies were complete. Businesses took holidays for the occasion, and everywhere people were rejoicing in their Princess's happiness.

What with all the preparations and the betrothal being so close, the soon to be affianced bride had to work hard to get a maid's attention if she had anything that she wanted them to get done. More often than not, she was ignored for some pressing matter that needed the staff's full concentration. Such as if the kitchens had enough of this or that or if the seamstresses had enough miniature pearls to complete sewing Princess Lucia's wedding dress. She would not actually wear the dress in the ceremony, but after the betrothal, the wedding would be the next big event to prepare for.

_It's as if those decorations are more important than I am, and I'm the bride!_ Lucia thought indignantly, quietly sulking in her room. _If_ _only they'd let Kaito near me, then at least I'd have someone to talk to._

It was an old tradition that the engaged couple be kept apart for the days just before their betrothal, thus ensuring no improper conduct, and they could each contemplate what their future life together would be like, and so on and so forth.

Thinking of Kaito made Lucia her normal, cheerful self once again. For someone who didn't think he was ready to be betrothed, much less married, the young sea prince was handling this whole situation rather well. He had been spending his time apart from Lucia being taught court etiquette, and what he was supposed to do in the ceremony. Over the short time that he had been in these lessons, there was already a notable improvement in his manner and general bearing. He looked proud of his progress, but when he passed Lucia in the corridors, she could see that he wished he was by her side instead of being taught proper princely behavior.

Lucia mulled over this for awhile and then there was a knock on her door. When she opened it, it was a maid, one of those who had ignored her for the past two weeks.

"Princess Lucia, the Princesses Rina, Coco, Seira, Hanon, Caren and Noel have arrived." The maid said politely, bowing to show deference to Lucia's high rank.

"Very good, Mika, you may go." Lucia waved the maid from the room, watching her bow once more before she finally left. Once the maid had gone, Lucia swam through the corridors, eventually ending up in the main room of the palace. It was mainly used to receive important visitors of state, and the visitors that were currently in the room were a happy relief to Lucia's eyes. Having been deprived of Kaito's companionship for nearly two full weeks, her fellow princesses were the next best thing.

"Hanon, Rina!" She called out, quickly swimming over to them. "I'm so glad to see all of you!" Her bright blue eyes took in each of the six princesses in turn.

"We're gad to be back, Lucia." Noel said softly, which was her normal tone of voice. She rarely raised her voice except in times of extreme danger, and it was a shock if she did otherwise.

"Sort of a short betrothal, isn't it, Lucia?" Hanon joked, laughing in satisfaction as her friends face was engulfed in a rosy blush.

"I didn't decide that! That was all Hippo, Taki and Nikora's doing!" Lucia protested, still blushing. It was true that such a short betrothal was uncommon, but secretly, Lucia was glad that she did not have that much longer to wait.

"So, where is he?" Caren asked, sparing no time on formalities or jests. She had been suspicious of Kaito when they had first come back to the seas, and she had not forgotten her suspicions. To her, any member of the Panthelessa was a potential enemy.

"Where is who?" Lucia queried, not immediately understanding who Caren was referring to. Then she grasped the situation, and her eyes flashed with annoyance. "Kaito is with Hippo, learning how to behave during our betrothal ceremony. I'm sorry he couldn't meet you when he arrived, but he had much more pressing matters to attend to. He'll be here once his lesson is done.

"For a Prince of the Panthelessa, such things must come quite easily, don't they? It's a pity that Kaito has to be the exception." Caren remarked snidely.

"Caren, I'm surprised at you!" Coco exclaimed in astonishment, "This is one of the most important days of Lucia and Kaito's lives, and you keep trying to ruin it with your cutting, rude remarks!"

"Thank you for that gallant speech, Coco, but let's let the Princess Lucia fight her own fiancé's battles, shall we?"

Lucia's hands clenched into fists and she began to move slowly and deliberately toward Caren. Everyone not directly involved in the small catfight watched anxiously. Caren had some sort of talent of getting under people's skin with her taunts, but all agreed that she had gone too far this time.

The distance between Lucia and Caren had lessened quite a bit, and if they were allowed to advance only a few more steps toward each other, there was a high possibility that they might come to blows.

"Lucia, Caren, please don't do this!" Seira cried pleadingly. No one paid attention to little Seira.

"Enough!" A masculine voice commanded from the entrance of the room. It was Kaito, looking for the entire world like a royal Prince of the Panthelessa. His forehead shone with a brilliant glow, the symbol it was emanating a testament to a long, though ashamedly not proud, heritage. "I have heard enough to know why there is this unhealthy discord among you." After so many intensive etiquette and behavioral lessons, he was even beginning to sound like a true prince. "Caren, you think of me as a possible traitor. Tell me this: When I had the choice to join with my brother and destroy you all, whose side did I choose. Yours, or the people you accuse me of being like."

Caren glared at him defiantly, and then lowered her gaze before his display of inherited power. "You fought for us." She muttered sullenly, for the moment convinced. Though knowing Caren, she would soon find something else to find fault with.

"Thank you for clearing that up. Lucia, will you step away from her, please?"

Lucia was still bristling with anger over the slight made about Kaito, but at his instructions, she calmed down and started to swim over to him. "This isn't over." Luca hissed as she passed Caren.

Caren said nothing in return, but only glared at the couple who had caused her to lose face in front of the people she most wanted to impress. Little did Caren know that you don't go around making friends while insulting another friend's fiancé.

"Ah, Lucia, but I'm afraid it is over." Kaito murmured confidently, linking arms with his beautiful girlfriend, soon to be fiancé, and later, wife. "Caren has agreed that I am not a traitor, and as such, I see no reason why you should attack her in a dark alley or corridor somewhere."

"I wouldn't attack her in a dark alley." Lucia protested, "I'd save time by attacking her here and now." Lucia struggled to free her arm from Kaito's grasp, but failed.

The sea prince sighed and did all he could to keep his love and the person she was currently upset with from potentially killing each other. If Lucia did manage to get free, then she would attack Caren. That would strain the relationship between the two kingdoms more than it could afford to be.

The were saved by the sound of Hippo entering the room and telling them all that it was time for the betrothal ceremonies to begin. The two who were to be betrothed must go to their rooms, where they will be assisted in preparing for the ceremony.

They all filed out and parted each to their own designated rooms. The Mermaid Princesses who were not going to be betrothed that day went with Lucia to help her prepare for the event. They wove ribbons through her hair and pulled it into two long, immaculately styled pigtails. Her garments were a gauzy skirt that was almost see-through, and had been dyed a soft pink.

Sooner than would have been thought possible with a demanding young woman being dressed for her betrothal, the preparations were complete, and the Princesses, with Lucia in the lead, filed out into the large auditorium of the castle where speeches were made and important ceremonies were held. Like the one that was taking place today.

Hippo was waiting at the exact center of the room. He had been appointed as Master of Ceremonies, and he bore the role with honor.

Lucia and Kaito had both been trained meticulously for this moment, so the entire thing would go off without any problems. The six Mermaid Princesses who did not play a part in the ceremony stayed in the background so that the exuberant crowd that had assembled had a good view of their Princess's betrothal to the young Prince of the Panthelessa.

On cue, the prince and princess bowed to each other and to Hippo, and then knelt, or in Lucia's case sitting on her tail, facing Hippo.

The little blue penguin cleared his throat for good measure before starting. "People of the North Pacific, we are gathered here today to be a witness to the betrothal of Princess Lucia and Prince Kaito." He paused and waited for the wild cheering to die down. "They, and the six other Mermaid Princesses who accompanied them, fought valiantly against the uprising of the Panthelessa not long ago. They were victorious, but as a unfortunate consequence, they were forced to return to the seas well before they were needed to avoid publicity in the human world." Hippo brought forth a gold goblet and held it up for all to see.

"With the customary drink that the couple shares from this cup, which has been passed down through countless generations, the betrothal will be sealed."

Filling the glass as best he could with wine, Hippo handed the cup to Lucia, who sipped from it and then handed it to Kaito. After the sea prince had drank, Hippo took the goblet once more.

"I now declare that this betrothal is sealed and binding!" The penguin cried. "On the first of the last month of the year, these two will be joined in holy matrimony!"

Their betrothal now official, Kaito and Lucia bowed once more, this time to the cheering crowd that called out blessings and much happiness for the coming auspicious day.


End file.
